WEEK 14 – DAY 3

And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, that man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. Luke 4:4

The Holy Spirit led Jesus into the wilderness to be tempted. He fasted and prayed for forty days. Next, the Bible makes the completely obvious statement that after forty days of fasting, He was hungry. Satan attacks Him at the point of His most pressing need—His extreme hunger. The rocks in the wilderness around the Jordan River look like the round loaves of bread, a staple food in Israel. Therefore, Satan tempts Jesus to turn those rocks into the bread they resemble. Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 8:3 as His reply. In fact, Jesus used scripture to combat every temptation the devil threw at Him. Job 23:12, “I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food” (emphasis added). Do we view God’s word, the Bible, as more important than our daily bread, our basic sustenance? I’m not talking more important than dessert or eating at a nice restaurant. Is God’s word more important to us than eating enough to survive? Of course, God intends for us to be physically nourished, but He has provided what is necessary for spiritual nourishment as well. The Bible equips us for everything God wants us to do, but how many of us are malnourished when it comes to studying God’s word. Or do we read enough to barely survive but neglect to “hide it in our hearts” (Psalm 119:11)? When temptation hits, when the enemy attacks, does the Holy Spirit reach for His sword and find the sheath empty?  The Spirit will bring to mind the scripture we have studied, meditated upon, and memorized when we need it. But if we have never filled our mind with the sword of the Spirit (Ephesians 6:17), we are presenting Him with an empty sheath where there should be a sword. The word of God needs to be inside us, internalized, ready for the Spirit’s use to encourage and exhort us. Dig in and feast on the Bible today!

Father, help us to memorize Bible verses in order to do battle with Satan. May Your Holy Spirit always find a sharpened sword in our minds, ready for His use.